One of the EU countries plans to introduce fines for the use of Soviet symbols: what kind and how much will have to be paid

Lithuania is planning to introduce fines for possession of Nazi and Soviet symbols with the intent to distribute them, although the amount of fines is not yet known. In Ukraine, fines and criminal liability with up to five years in prison are provided for the production and propaganda of totalitarian symbols.

In April 2024, the chairman of the Seimas Committee on Culture, Vytautas Juozapaitis, and Defense Minister Laurinas Kasciunas registered a bill proposing to expand the ban on the use of symbols of the Nazi and Soviet regimes.

The draft law proposes to ban not only the distribution and display of these symbols in Lithuania but also their importation and transit through the country. The Ministry of Culture supported these changes but added one more important detail: the introduction of liability for the storage of such symbols for the purpose of distribution.

The Ministry of Culture proposes to give Lithuanian customs officers the authority to initiate cases of administrative offenses related to the transportation of prohibited symbols. Currently, this is done by the police and the State Border Guard Service, but given the new rules, customs officers will also be able to draw up protocols and conduct investigations in such cases. This will significantly improve control over border crossings and identify violators faster.

Lithuania already has a ban on the public display and distribution of Nazi and Soviet symbols and images of the leaders of these regimes. Violation of this law is punishable by serious fines. For individuals, the fine ranges from 300 to 700 euros, and for heads of legal entities, from 600 to 1,200 euros.

The draft law is currently under consideration by the Lithuanian government, and once adopted, it will be submitted to the parliament for further approval. If the document is approved, Lithuania will become one of the countries with the most stringent restrictions on the storage and use of symbols of totalitarian regimes, which will help to further strengthen its memory policy.

In September of this year, Lithuanian customs officials have already fined two companies for violating sanctions against Russia, which demonstrates the country's readiness to actively monitor compliance with the law. Each of the companies was fined EUR 10 thousand for providing services for the storage and processing of customs documents for sanctioned goods.

Fines and penalties for the use of prohibited symbols in Ukraine

Ukraine also has strict legislation on the use of symbols of totalitarian regimes. According to Article 173-3 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses, the production and propaganda of the St. George's ribbon is punishable by a fine of 50 to 150 tax-free minimum incomes (850 to 2550 UAH) with confiscation of the ribbon or items containing its image.

More serious is the punishment for the production, distribution of communist and Nazi symbols, as well as propaganda of communist and national socialist (Nazi) totalitarian regimes. This is a criminal offense under Article 436-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which provides for imprisonment for up to five years.

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